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Olympus SP-700

Reviewed March 2006

Image Quality

Introduction
Ergonomics
Characteristics
Image Quality
Interface & Software
Camera Views
Test Photos
Specifications
Our Opinion
Aperture: f3.3, shutter speed: 1/200 sec., 64 ISO.

The Olympus SP-700 is aimed at a market segment that is looking for a simple-to-operate camera, and is not inclined to waste time on technical details. The SP-700 is a fully automatic camera which offers 26 capture modes that cover the most varied conditions imaginable, making it possible to shoot a multitude of different subjects without having to worry about camera settings. And the results are images captured with little effort that are correctly exposed, and have superb colours.

For the more adventurous souls, the SP-700 offers controls over sensitivity, white balance, and even exposure compensation. All these settings are done in the menu, and this highlights another advantage to having a 3-inch monitor.

Not only does the size of the monitor make it easier to frame shots — critical with a camera that has no optical viewfinder and which requires being held out in front of one’s face — but the options in the menus are very legible.

Moreover, the fact that the camera offers the option of displaying a composition easily by pressing the DISP/GUIDE button is useful, as keeping things aligned correctly with cameras that have to be held out to see the screen tends to be more difficult than with those that have viewfinders.

Aperture: f4, shutter speed: 1/400 sec., 64 ISO.
The SP-700 provides a 3X zoom with 3 aspherical elements and its correction for distortion is quite effective. Barrel distortion is invisible in shots captured at normal distances using the wide angle, but a slight amount of pincushion can become visible with telephoto shots that contain verticals aligned close to the edges of the frame. Otherwise, no chromatic aberration is noticeable throughout the focal range of the zoom, but a softer focus can be observed with wide angle shots.
Aperture: f4, shutter speed: 1/320 sec., 64 ISO.

Light metering is achieved using a system that is referred to as “Auto” but which performs in a manner similar to a centre-weighted pattern, and which normally produces excellent results. Moreover, the SP-700 is also equipped with a spot metering capability, which can be very useful when the subject is strongly backlit.

While outdoor shots turn out well, exhibiting bright and accurate colours, indoor shots with flash can be less predictable.

Then, the quality of the image is affected by the quantity of ambient light, the source of the light and the distance to the subject. The small flash of the SP-700 has a limited range, and it is generally necessary to set the sensitivity to Auto to get the most out of it and obtain sufficiently bright images. The downside of letting the camera increase the sensitivity is an increase in noise, showing as “grain” in the image, although usually the images print very well.

With the sensitivity set to 64 ISO, noise is undetectable in photos captured outdoors and with good light. Images captured at 100 ISO are likewise very good, noise being only detectable in shadow areas. At 200 and 400 ISO, noise becomes increasingly visible, and can be found in areas that contain uniform colours as well as in shadows. Nevertheless, 400 ISO is useable in bright daylight, and can produce good photos while ensuring that the camera has a sufficiently high shutter speed to freeze movement.

Aperture: f4, shutter speed: 1/400 sec., 64 ISO.
With this camera, Olympus has cut down the image quality and compression options that are normally offered on their cameras, and tied the level of compression to the image size.
Aperture: f.3.6, shutter speed: 1/500 sec., 64 ISO.  

Even at the highest image quality, SH Super High 6M, the images captured by the 6-megapixel CCD are rarely more that 1.1 to 1.2 MB each, a compression ratio that ranges from 14:1 to 18:1, a level that is considered to be a medium compression. And with very detailed subjects, some loss of detail is detectable when the image is seen at 100% on a monitor.

Still, it is worth noting that although the compression is quite strong, the images show no major artefacts.

In summary, the SP-700 is an interesting camera that is simple to use and which has the advantage of a large monitor, giving the user an excellent preview of the image about to be captured. Its 6-megapixel images can be printed out to 7 x 9.4 inch (18 x 24 cm) size at 300 dpi without any problem, and its automatic capabilities should appeal to those that want a sleek, compact, and fuss-free camera to carry along anytime and anywhere.

Compare Prices for
Olympus SP-700 Duracell Battery
StoreSeller RatingsDescriptionPrice
DuracellDirectin stock$44.29
Introduction
Ergonomics
Characteristics
Image Quality
Interface & Software
Camera Views
Test Photos
Specifications
Our Opinion



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